


Lost Without You

by sjhw_tolerance (mscorkill)



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-04-11
Updated: 2012-04-11
Packaged: 2017-11-03 12:08:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/381186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mscorkill/pseuds/sjhw_tolerance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Janet kissed Daniel goodbye that morning she never dreamt it could be their last kiss.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lost Without You

**Author's Note:**

> For the 2008 Dan & Jan Ficathon.
> 
> Prompt: Daniel is captured and is emotionally/physically abused. Janet helps him deal with it either once he gets back, or during the captivity.
> 
> Originally posted March 2008.

LOST WITHOUT YOU

“You wanted to see me, General?”

Doctor Janet Fraiser stood framed in the doorway to General George Hammond’s office, a slight frown on her face as she scanned the crowded room. Hammond sat behind his desk and Janet didn’t like the look of worry and concern etched into the older man’s round face. The other occupants were quickly sorted out—Colonel Jack O’Neill, looking even grimmer than usual—and a man she didn’t recognize.

The stranger had risen slightly when she’d entered and Janet was reminded briefly of Teal’c; the man was tall and massively built like the Jaffa, the fabric of his well-cut suit straining across his broad shoulders, a visitor badge clipped to his lapel. His eyes were dark and speculative and she felt herself stiffen slightly as he studied her.

“Please come in, Doctor,” Hammond said, “and shut the door.”

Doing as ordered, she remained standing stiffly with her back to the door, feeling acutely claustrophobic in the now closed room, her sense of unease rising with every passing moment of silence from the three men.

“This is Detective Haynes,” Hammond finally said. The dark eyed stranger inclined his head slightly. “Detective Haynes is with the Colorado Springs police department.” Hammond’s voice was gentle and soft-spoken, a sharp contrast Janet thought, to the tension she sensed in the room. “He has a few questions he’d like to ask you.”

The detective leaned forward and opened a manila folder resting on the edge of the General’s desk; he picked up a picture and handed it to her. “Do you recognize this man?” he asked, his voice low and gravely.

Janet took the photo and glanced at it. She recognized the style of picture right away, it was a standard photo ID; the clean cut young man in the picture smiled engagingly back at her, his dark hair cut short in the style of almost every male student she encountered at the Air Force Academy. “Yes,” she replied, her confusion increasing. “Timothy Merrill.” She handed the photo back to Haynes. “He’s in my senior seminar.”

“Senior seminar?” Haynes asked.

Janet quickly glanced at Hammond, when he nodded she looked back at Haynes and continued. “I teach a six-week special invitation seminar for upper classmen every semester at the Academy; bioterrorism and chemical warfare,” she added for clarification. The three men in the room exchanged glances and Janet felt her unease begin to be supplanted by annoyance.

“General,” she said, her voice sharper than she intended. “What is this about?”

Hammond seemed to sag in his chair and Haynes opened his mouth, but O’Neill beat the detective to it. “Daniel’s gone missing and evidently so has Cadet Merrill.”

Daniel missing? Janet quickly tamped down the wave of panic that rushed through her. “Missing? I just saw him this morning….” Her voice trailed off as she realized what she had just revealed. She’d kissed him goodbye on her front porch that morning when she’d left for work and he’d left to run some errands before reporting in later. And while her relationship with Daniel wasn’t exactly a secret, it also wasn’t something either of them advertised either.

“We have reason to believe that Doctor Jackson was abducted and that Merrill is involved,” Haynes elaborated.

“Abducted?” It was like the three men were speaking a foreign language, nothing they said made any sense to her. Of course, she realized dully, she hadn’t seen Daniel at all since that kiss on her front porch…but then that wasn’t unusual, given the demands of both their jobs and their normal discretion while on base.

Haynes pulled a small notepad out of his inner suit pocket and flipped it open. “At approximately nine o’clock this morning, 911 received a call that was traced back to Doctor Jackson’s cell phone.”

“What—”

Haynes cut her off. “We don’t know, Doctor, the call was cut off and we traced it through its GPS.”

“They found his phone in a dumpster at a convenience store at El Dorado and Grand,” Hammond added.

Janet shifted, leaning against the low credenza beneath the destination map window for support. She knew that convenience store, it was less than a mile from her house.

“When the police got there, they found Daniel’s car in the parking lot, but no sign of Daniel.” O’Neill sounded frustrated and worried.

“I don’t understand. What does Tim Merrill have to do with this?”

Haynes shuffled through the folder and pulled out another photo, handing it to her. It was obviously a copy, printed off a computer, the picture a grainy black and white shot of the exterior of the convenience store. She recognized Daniel right away, even though his back was to the camera. He stood by his car, apparently talking to the man whose face was clearly visible even in the poor quality photo—Timothy Merrill.

She turned to Hammond. “General?”

“They found these when they went to Merrill’s dorm room.”

Her unease turning into a deep sense of foreboding, Janet took the large envelope from Hammond and slowly opened it. Pulling out several of the photos she glanced at them, shocked at what she saw. Feeling almost panicked, she ignored Hammond’s surprised look when she dumped the rest of photos out onto the middle of his desk. Oh god…she pawed through them; pictures of her and Daniel…walking together at the mall, picking Cassie up at school, eating dinner at one of their favorite restaurants, kissing on her doorstep. “What is this?” Turning on Haynes, she cried, “I don’t understand,” even though she had the sick feeling that she did.

The detective’s eyes were sympathetic. “We also found hundreds of pictures of you, Doctor Fraiser, hidden under Merrill’s bed. Apparently your cadet has been harboring a crush on you for quite some time now.”

“Are you saying—”

“What he’s saying,” O’Neill interrupted, “is that apparently Cadet Merrill wanted to get rid of the competition.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daniel moaned and tried to roll over, wincing as his cold muscles protested the movement. “Jack?” he mumbled, trying to move his arms, only to realize he was bound. “Sam? Teal’c?” He finally managed to roll onto his side and opened his eyes, squinting when he realized his glasses were missing. It wasn’t going to matter about his glasses, wherever he was, it was dark and cramped and cold. He could barely concentrate, his head was pounding; but he forced himself beyond the pain and then he remembered. He wasn’t on a mission. He wasn’t being held captive on some alien planet with Jack, Sam and Teal’c. He was home, on Earth, where things like getting tied up didn’t happen to him.

“Hello?” he called. Slowly shifting around on the dusty floor, his eyes adjusted to the almost pitch black of the room and he felt his heart sink. Wherever he was, it was small and cramped; it seemed he barely had room to move. Forcing his breathing to slow down, he listened carefully. He couldn’t hear anything except the faint sound of the wind and the pounding of his own heart. Okay, Daniel decided, he’d been in worse situations before and at least he wasn’t on a Goa’uld mother ship this time around. He knew the drill and ignoring his pain and discomfort, he started taking inventory of his condition and his current situation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I can’t believe we have to just sit here while Daniel is out there somewhere!” Sam paced her lab, frustration radiating off her in almost visible waves.

“Dammit, Carter, don’t you think I feel the same way?” Jack practically snarled, identical frustration eating away at him too. “But Hammond has basically ordered us not to get involved.”

“And we’re okay with that?” she demanded. Jack ignored the glare she directed his way, he knew she wasn’t mad at him, she was just upset with the whole damn situation—just like he was.

“It appears we have little choice in the matter,” Teal’c commented.

“Teal’c’s right,” Jack agreed, albeit reluctantly. “If it were aliens or the NID or something like that, there wouldn’t be any question about our involvement.”

“But not a kidnapping and a stalker? God, he could be—”

“Don’t say it, Carter. He’s not dead.”

“I hope you’re right, sir.”

“What of Doctor Fraiser?” Teal’c asked.

“Haynes took her down to police headquarters. Something about needing an official statement.”

“Crap,” Sam said, stopping suddenly in mid-stride and looking at her watch. “I told her I’d pick up Cassie and take her to my place tonight.”

“Go,” Jack said. “God knows how long they’ll keep Fraiser.”

She nodded and rushed out, leaving the two men alone in her lab, the only sound in the suddenly quiet room the snap of the pencil Jack held in his hands. Tossing the broken pencil down onto Carter’s desk, Jack looked across the room at Teal’c. “Let’s get out of here.”

Teal’c raised an eyebrow. “What do you have in mind, O’Neill?”

Jack stood, his expression determined. “I’m not sure, Teal’c,” he said, heading towards the door, confident that Teal’c would be right behind him. “But there sure isn’t a damn thing we can do about Daniel from here.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After several futile hours spent going over the crime scene and searching Timothy Merrill’s dorm room for any clues the police might have missed, Jack and Teal’c sat in General Kerrigan’s office at the Academy. Cadet Anthony Mangiamelli stood at attention, looking anxious and scared.

“You have something to tell us, Cadet?” General Kerrigan asked patiently.

“Yes, sir.” Mangiamelli’s eyes flickered nervously around the room before resting back on the General. “I told the police everything I know, sir.”

“We know, son.”

“You had no idea he had a crush on Doctor Fraiser?” Jack had to ask.

“No, sir.” Mangiamelli looked uncomfortable for a moment and then shrugged. “I mean, everyone knew Tim had a thing for the Doctor. But I never thought….”

“Thought what, Cadet?”

“Well, I mean, he used to go on about how once he graduated, he was going to ask her out, that kind of thing. But we never took him seriously.”

“Not even when he was stalking her, taking all those pictures?”

Mangiamelli looked scared then. “I swear, sir. I had no idea he was that far gone.” He seemed to collect himself. “But that isn’t why I came here, sir,” he said, once more addressing Kerrigan, who nodded encouragingly. Mangiamelli reached into his pocket and pulled out a small spiral notebook. “I found this, sir,” he said almost hesitantly, setting the notebook down on the General’s desk and quickly backing away. “It was Tim’s. I found it in my book bag; I must’ve grabbed it by accident this morning when I went to class. I looked at it, sir….” The boy shuddered almost imperceptibly. “Well, I think you should read it, sir.”

Jack exchanged a look with Kerrigan, who nodded slightly. “Thank you, Cadet. You did the right thing. Dismissed.”

“Thank you, sir,” Mangiamelli replied, looking relieved.

Jack waited until the boy had left the office before he reached over and grabbed the small notebook off Kerrigan’s desk. He flipped through it, frowning at the tiny, cramped writing that filled the front and back of each page. “You think he’s telling the truth?” he asked Kerrigan.

“I believe he speaks the truth, O’Neill.”

“I have to agree with Teal’c, Jack.” Kerrigan sighed. “Merrill was a good student, passed all the psychological testing with flying colors. If I hadn’t seen this,” he gestured towards the print taken from the convenience store’s surveillance video that lay in the middle of his desk, “I wouldn’t have believed it.”

“Can we see his file?”

“I have a copy of it here,” Kerrigan said with a tight smile. “Go ahead, you can take it. It’s just a copy anyway, the police have the original.”

“Thanks. I’ll take this too,” Jack said, briefly holding up the note pad before putting in his pocket. He stood to leave then, Teal’c joining him, the Jaffa pulling his black watch cap down a little farther on his head.

“Jack?”

Both men paused by the door and Jack looked back at Kerrigan.

“I don’t know what happened, but Merrill’s a good kid. Try to remember that when you find him.”

“Try telling that to Daniel.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Yes, sweetie, I’m sure.” Janet turned the key in the lock, juggling the phone and her purse. “Stay with Sam tonight. I’m sure we’ll know something by morning.” The latch turned and she opened the door, stepping into the dark house. “Yes, Cassie. I will call you the minute I hear anything.” Janet kicked the door shut behind her. “I love you too.”

Flipping the phone shut, she leaned against the door, sighing heavily. Haynes had kept her for hours at the police station, asking questions and steadfastly refusing to answer any of hers. She was sick with worry and as far as she could tell—or anyone would tell her—the police were no closer to finding Daniel or Merrill than they had been since she’d been summoned into Hammond’s office hours earlier. She realized she was probably being unfair to Colorado Spring’s finest, they were undoubtedly doing everything they could to find Daniel, but she also knew that with every passing hour, the odds of finding Daniel alive diminished dramatically.

Dropping her purse onto the sofa, she shrugged out of her coat and dropped it there as well. She didn’t turn on any lights, merely making her way to the kitchen. She was tired and though the thought of food made her nauseous, she knew she needed to eat something. Opening the refrigerator door, she listlessly studied the contents, finally grabbing the carton of orange juice.

The light in the kitchen suddenly flared on and startled, Janet turned, the carton of orange juice dropping out of her hand onto the floor. She didn’t even register the mess, orange liquid pooling around her feet, she only had eyes for the man who leaned casually in the doorway, a gun dangling idly from one hand.

“Tim!” she gasped.

The young man smiled, his blue eyes lighting up in a manner that in no way reassured her. “Janet,” he said easily. “You don’t mind me calling you that, do you?” he asked, waving the gun her way. “I know you’re a major, as well as my instructor, but I’d like to think under the circumstances that our relationship has moved beyond that kind of formality.”

Everything instinct she had screamed at her to run away and escape from the madness she saw in his eyes, but her need to know what he had done with Daniel was stronger. “No,” she stammered. Clearing her voice, she forced a smile to her face. “I think I’d like that.”

“Good.” He took several steps into the kitchen and she had to force herself to keep her ground and not back away from him. “I hope you don’t mind that I let myself in?”

“No, no,” she said hurriedly. “Not at all.”

“This isn’t how I wanted it to be.” He stopped right in front of her, his smile fading.

“Didn’t want what?”

“But you kept ignoring me and when I saw you come out with him this morning and kiss him, I knew I had to do something.”

It sickened her to think that he’d been watching her and Daniel, following her, spying on them. Fighting down her revulsion, she asked as calmly as she could, “What did you do with Daniel, Tim?”

“I knew from the first moment I saw you, that you were the one I’d been waiting for. You don’t remember the first time I saw you, but I do. That first day in class?” His eyes grew hazy and his voice softened. “Your smile was so kind…you looked so beautiful.”

“I remember, Tim,” she lied, hoping to keep him distracted. “I could tell right away you were going to be one of my best students.”

“No! I was never more than just a name on your class roster!” The madness was back in his eyes and he grabbed her arm, waving the gun wildly and dragging her out of the kitchen. “But that’s going to change now.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daniel had managed to work himself to a sitting position, propped up against the rough wooden wall of…wherever he was. It wasn’t much better than lying on the cold, hard floor, but at least it was slightly more tolerable. He was on the verge of losing track of time, though he knew not more than twelve hours could have passed since he’d been abducted. He wondered if his kidnapper was ever going to return or was he going to be left to die a slow, painful death in his dark prison?

He’d had a lot of time to think about what had happened and to wonder about the harmless looking young man who had approached him outside the convenience store where he’d stopped to pick up a cup of coffee. Daniel didn’t think even Jack would have been suspicious of the clean cut man who had asked him if he wouldn’t mind calling the automobile club to come jumpstart his truck. Of course, that was all before a gun had been pulled on him and he’d been knocked unconscious, only to wake up aching all over and trussed like a Thanksgiving turkey.

Daniel didn’t think he’d ever seen the man who’d abducted him before, though there was something vaguely familiar about him that he couldn’t quite place. He wondered why he’d been singled out for such a vicious attack; for while he knew a number of system lords that wanted him dead, the only people on Earth who might have wanted to kidnap him were the NID and unless their tactics had undergone a dramatic change, this wasn’t their usual modus operandi. Still…it was a possibility he had to consider.

But most of all, he wondered about Janet. He loved her so and it made him heartsick to think that she was worried about what had happened to him and where he was—or worse yet, if he was even still alive. He refused to even consider the possibility that no one at the SGC knew he was missing. He could only hope that his last minute frantic attempt upon seeing the gun to dial 911 had been successful; or that someone at the convenience store at witnessed his abduction.

The almost tomb-like silence of his prison was suddenly broken by the loud noise of an engine and Daniel roused himself from the lethargy that had enveloped him. If his captor had returned, this might be his only opportunity to discover why he was being held prisoner and hopefully negotiate his release; his optimism only slightly dimmed by the very real possibility that his captor had merely returned to kill him. The engine ground to a halt and in the resulting silence, Daniel heard doors opening and slamming, the angry voice of a man and the equally angry and higher voice of a woman. And if he had been scared before, he was terrified when he recognized the woman’s voice.

More doors slammed and he heard the heavy tread of footsteps and felt the floor beneath him vibrate when the door to his prison suddenly flew open, the bright light from the outer room blinding him. He sensed a struggle, only able to make out vague shapes, when he heard a woman’s soft cry and a dull thud when something—or someone—fell on the floor. The door slammed shut, leaving him once more in the dark.

Straining in the dark to see any shapes or movement, Daniel whispered. “Janet?”

He sensed her movement, felt her presence and familiar scent before he felt her small hands running up his chest to his face. “Daniel?”

Even though the whole situation had unexpectedly taken a turn for the worse—if there could be a ‘worse’—Daniel felt curiously light-hearted. “Jan, is that really you?”

“Yes, yes, it’s me.” Even though he couldn’t see her, he could hear the suppressed tears in her voice. “Are you all right?” she asked, her hands running over his body now.

“I think so.” He shifted slightly, almost bumping his head with hers. “Sorry,” he said.  
She chuckled softly and he couldn’t help but grin stupidly in the dark. “My hands are tied—along with my feet.”

He felt her hands run down his legs, stopping at his ankles and within minutes his legs were free. “Here,” she said, her hands traveled up his body and back to his shoulders, “just turn a little bit.” He did as she asked and then felt her fingers working at the ropes binding his wrists. He could feel her hands trembling as her fingers brushed against his hands, her breathing too fast and his heart ached.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

“For what?” She didn’t pause in her task.

“For getting you into this.” Daniel heard her swiftly indrawn breath and the soft sob she tried to stifle, when suddenly his hands were free. He sensed her sitting back on her heels and he sat back against the wall, rubbing his wrists and ignoring the pins and needles as the circulation returned.

“Believe me, Daniel,” she said from somewhere in front of him. He reached out then, his hands connected with her soft body and pulled her into his arms. “This wasn’t your fault.”

“It doesn’t matter,” he murmured, nuzzling her hair while she clung to him. “We’ll get out of this somehow.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sam turned the car onto the street that led to the Fraiser house, only half-listening to Cassie’s non-stop chatter about school and Dominic, her brain still trying to puzzle out Daniel’s abduction. There seemed to be a lot of activity on the quiet street for a school morning and she frowned slightly, slowing down when she realized that there were several police cars on the street with all the commotion centered in front of the Fraiser house.

“Isn’t that Jack’s truck?” Cassie asked, her eyes wide.

“Yeah, it is.” Sam pulled her Volvo into the one empty spot along the curb, watching as several uniformed police officers suddenly emerged from the front door of the house. “You wait here,” she instructed Cassie when the girl started the open car door.

“Sam!” the girl protested.

“I mean it, Cass. Wait here.” Quickly getting out of the car, Sam hurried up the front walk.

“I’m sorry, ma’am,” one of the police officers said to her, blocking her way. “I can’t let you go any farther.”

“I’m Major Samantha Carter, with the Air Force. What’s going on? I work with Doctor Fraiser.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am. This is a crime scene.”

The officer still blocked her way, but then she saw the front door open and a familiar figure appeared. “Colonel!” she called.

O’Neill saw her and came down the steps. “It’s okay, officer. She’s with me.” To Sam’s relief, the two policemen accepted his explanation and went on their way, leaving them alone on the front walk.

“What’s going on, sir?”

“Looks like the doc’s been abducted, too.”

“What?” Sam looked around wildly, as if Janet would suddenly appear because she willed it.

“Fraiser didn’t report for her early shift. Hammond called the police….”

“And they think she’s been abducted, too?”

The Colonel looked grim. “A neighbor saw a truck matching the description of Merrill’s driving up and down the street last night. We know Fraiser got home from the police station, her car is here and her purse is still in the house.”

“But she’s not?”

O’Neill shook his head. “There’s evidence of forced entry through the back door.”

Teal’c suddenly appeared from around the far side of the house and joined them. “Hey, Teal’c,” Sam said.

He inclined his head. “Major Carter.”

“What have you got, T?”

Teal’c kept his voice low. “There are boot impressions in the ground near the backdoor that could not belong to Janet Fraiser or Cassandra.”

“Or Daniel?” Sam asked.

“I do not believe so. I also so evidence of one person dragging another. There is intermingling of the boot prints and shoes of the type Doctor Fraiser wears.”

“Jack? Sam?” A car door slammed and Cassie stood there, looking uncertain and scared by Sam’s car.

“Teal’c?” the Colonel asked. “Can you take care of Cassie?”

“I can.”

They both watched as Teal’c walked down to where the girl waited and gently drew her aside. Sam looked back at O’Neill. “What are we going to do? Do the police have any idea where he could have taken them?”

“I don’t know about the police,” O’Neill said. “But I think I might know where they are.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daniel shivered slightly and tightened his arm around Janet; she snuggled closer, rubbing her cheek against his chest. It had been an incredibly long night, only made remotely tolerable because of Janet, though her presence with him in captivity scared him to death. He had long ago come to terms with his own death, though he had always imagined he’d die on some alien planet, but the prospect that the woman he loved would die along with him? Daniel didn’t think he would ever be prepared for that.

Using the penlight his dear doctor belatedly remembered that she had—a testament to her state of mind when she’d been held by gunpoint and abducted by Merrill—Daniel checked his watch.

“What time is it?” she murmured, her voice drowsy.

“Not quite seven.”

“I wonder when he’ll be back.”

“I don’t know,” he murmured. They’d heard the truck roar out and leave not long after Merrill had locked Janet in the room with him. Using her remembered penlight, they had investigated the closet-like space, finding it empty with only a boarded up window and nothing that they could use to escape. The door was surprisingly sturdy and Daniel had come to the reluctant conclusion the only way they’d be able to make their escape would be to over-power Merrill when and if he returned and checked on his captives.

It still seemed almost incomprehensible to Daniel that the young man who had abducted them was in the Air Force and someone Janet knew—not to mention the reason he had abducted them in the first place. Daniel knew firsthand about all the different kinds of insanity there were in the universe, he just really hadn’t expected that his lover would fall victim to the delusions of a love-obsessed stalker.

“How are you doing?” she asked.

“Okay,” was his simple reply. He didn’t need to elaborate for her that he was going on twenty-four hours now without any water, food being secondary to the looming threat of dehydration.

“I wonder how Cassie is?”

“You told me she’s with Sam. She’ll be okay.”

“I know…I just worry about her…what this will do to her—”

“Shhh….” he murmured, hugging her tighter and pressing a kiss to the top of her head, desperately hoping he was right. “We’re going to get out of here.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His head hurt so bad, he didn’t know what to do except to take more aspirin and keep driving. Nothing was going like he’d planned and he didn’t know what to do or how to make it better. Normally Tim found driving his big truck up and down the mountainous back roads soothing, but not this time. Slamming on the brakes, the truck skidded to a stop on the dirt road. Tim rested his head against the steering wheel, panting. Why didn’t she love him? Couldn’t she see how much he loved her? What he had done for her? What he was going to do for her?

With renewed resolve and determination, Tim put the track back into gear and revved the engine, fishtailing on the dirt and loose rocks as he headed down the mountain. He smiled, the throbbing in his head fading some. He’d show her...he’d prove to her he was worthy of her love.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“This is incredible,” Sam said, from the backseat. “He really had them all fooled, didn’t he?”

“Evidently.” Jack had given Sam the diary, for lack of a better word, and she’d been engrossed in reading Merrill’s ramblings since they’d left Colorado Springs. Jack had been amazed last night when he’d read the young man’s writings that documented his obvious break with reality and subsequent descent into a world where he and Janet Fraiser were almost fairy tale lovers, living happily every after in his deluded imaginary world.

“And you really think his grandfather’s cabin is this…lover’s hideaway he talks about in here?”

Jack shrugged, glancing briefly at her reflection in the rear view before once more focusing his attention the roads and the mile markers. They were up high in the mountains now and even though he’d memorized the location of Conrad Merrill’s cabin, it would still be all too easy to miss the turn off. “It’s the only lead we have, Carter.”

“Should we not have informed the police of our intent, O’Neill?” Teal’c asked calmly from his position in the front seat of the truck. It had been a difficult scene at Fraiser’s house, with Cassie discovering her adopted mother was missing, but Teal’c had handled the girl with the gentle sensitivity that always seemed surprising coming from the burly Jaffa.

As anxious as Jack had been to get on the road and check out Merrill’s cabin, they’d had to get Cassie settled first, and thank god her best friend’s mother worked from home. So with Detective Haynes’ blessing, they’d left Cassie in her care. Of course, Jack had neglected to mention to Haynes what their plans were, but since the detective hadn’t asked….

“We don’t know for sure that Merrill has them at the cabin. We’ll just do a little reconnaissance work…check things out, before we call them.”

“I hope you’re right, sir.”

The clouds settled down around them the higher they drove into the mountains, the sky turning dark and overcast. When they finally reached the dirt road turn-off just past mile marker forty-five, there was the crack of lightning and boom of thunder and it started to rain, big fat drops that heralded a typical afternoon mountain thunderstorm. They bounced along the now muddy ruts in the dirt road and while Jack didn’t look forward to skulking about in the rain, at least the noise of the storm might obscure their arrival and give them the advantage they needed if Merrill really did have Daniel and Fraiser stashed at his family’s summer cabin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Janet snuggled closer to Daniel, the chill in the air intensifying with the first rumbles of thunder announcing the storm. Her throat was so dry, it hurt to swallow and she knew it had to be even worse for Daniel. But beyond her physical discomfort was her fear. The only thing keeping her together was Daniel. And she knew she couldn’t let herself fall apart, she had to be strong, but she was so scared. Scared that Tim would come back and carry out whatever plan his delusion demanded—and almost equally scared that he wouldn’t return, leaving them to die a slow and unpleasant death, the four walls of their prison becoming their tomb. And she didn’t even want to think about what she would do if anything happened to Daniel.

While the physician in her knew Tim wasn’t responsible for his actions, that he was suffering from some kind of psychotic break, she knew that no matter how scared she was, she would do whatever it took to protect herself and her family—and Daniel counted right up there with Cassie when it came to family. Janet vaguely heard the thunder and the almost soothing sound of the rain and in spite of their dire condition, she almost relaxed a little more, but she jerked upright when the loud roar of a truck’s engine suddenly broke the sounds of the storm and into their prison.

Daniel’s arm tightened around her. “It’s show time,” he murmured.

“I’m ready.” She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand before scrambling to her feet. Her muscles ached from sitting on the hard wooden floor and she was still thirsty and cold, but she knew Daniel was right, if there was their one opportunity to take Tim by surprise, they had to be ready when he opened that door.

When Daniel had first suggested his plan, she had wanted to veto it. She wasn’t a soldier, she was a doctor. Sure, she had some training in hand-to-hand combat and weapons, but her knowledge was basic and while she was a good on the firing range, she didn’t have any kind of weapon. Of course, Daniel had more training and experience than she did, but she knew he preferred to use words, not weapons. It was a long shot, but between the two of them, they might be able to overpower the younger and stronger cadet. Which meant they had to catch him off guard.

Given the close confines of the room, it didn’t take much maneuvering to get into position. Daniel stood right by the door and she crouched slightly behind him, pressed into the corner. Feeling around on the floor, she grabbed the rope that had been used to bind Daniel and clutched it tightly. If Daniel managed to get Tim down, it was her job to start tying him up—even though right now she felt she’d like to do nothing better than wrap the rope tightly around the young man’s neck.

The engine suddenly shut down, the only sounds that of the rain against the roof and the sound of the wind in the trees. Janet almost held her breath, listening carefully. She heard the truck door slam, followed shortly by the sound of boot-steps on the wooden front porch. She tensed, the front door opening with a tell-tale squeak and then swinging shut with a dull thud. There was a lull in the rainstorm and it was so quiet, Janet imagined she could hear Tim’s fast breathing, his blue eyes filled with an eerie calm while he considered the next step in his mad plan. And then the footsteps started again, coming closer to their prison. She gasped, quickly suppressing it, when the lock on the door rattled.

“Janet darling?” Tim’s voice was slightly muffled, but then the door swung open and he was silhouetted in the doorway. “I’ve come back!” He hadn’t turned any lights on and the weak afternoon sunshine filtered dimly through the trees into the interior of the cabin. She held her breath and didn’t say anything.

“Janet?” he sounded confused now and she saw him begin to reach into his jacket pocket as he took another step further into the room. Even though she was expecting it, Daniel’s sudden movement startled her and she gasped, watching in the dim light while Daniel tackled Merrill.

Both men hit the floor with a thud that rattled the floor boards beneath her, Merrill’s loud squawk of surprise a sharp contrast to the silent control of Daniel. In the dim light she quickly lost sight of which man was which as they grappled, rolling around in the doorway. She wanted to jump in and help, but didn’t, realizing that her presence would only complicate matters for Daniel. Pressing herself further back in the corner, she waited, listening to the grunts and groans of the men, the dull thuds of flesh impacting on flesh. Then a movement caught her eye, the glint of dull metal in someone’s hand.

“Daniel!” she screamed, struggling to her feet, her back against the wall. “He’s got a gun!”  
The contest between the two men seemed to intensify and she gasped and cried out again when the report of a gunshot sounded loudly in the small room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I believe I see the dwelling, O’Neill.”

Jack slowed the truck down, peering intently through the trees and the rain. Sure enough, he could just make out the rustic structure, nestled in a small copse of mature aspen and spruce. He also had no difficulty in seeing the black pick-up parked at the side of the cabin.  
“Looks like our boy is here.”

He heard Sam moving around in the back seat and looked in the rear view mirror; she was busy pulling on one of the Kevlar vests. “What’s the plan, sir?” she asked, looking up and meeting his eyes.

“We get Daniel and Fraiser out if they’re here.” Jack eased the truck onto the side of the dirt road, parking behind a stand of several pines. Shutting off the ignition, he took the vest Carter passed from the backseat.

“And if they are not?” Teal’c queried, pocketing the zat Carter handed him.

Jack smiled grimly, checking his nine mil before stuffing it into his pocket and tugging his black watch cap down over his silver hair. “Then we very kindly ask Cadet Merrill what he’s done with them.”

Teal’c nodded. “It will be my distinct pleasure to question Cadet Merrill.”

They got out of the truck, a light rain still fell, just enough to make the ground soggy and slightly treacherous. “Teal’c,” Jack instructed, “you go around back while Carter and I—” His comment abruptly interrupted by the sound of a woman’s scream and then the sharp report of a gun.

“Screw that!” Jack cursed, anger and fear clenching at his stomach as he took off at a run towards the cabin, Teal’c and Carter right behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Janet shrank back against the wall, unable to control her sudden trembling while she watched one of the men rise from the floor while the second one groaned and collapsed in a heap on the hard floor. “Daniel?” she whispered.

“No,” Tim Merrill’s shaky voice said. “I’ve saved you from him.” He took a step towards her, his voice stronger. “Everything’s going to be all right now, darling. We can finally be together.”

There was another low groan from the floor and Janet instinctively moved towards Daniel, Tim swiftly blocking her. “You’ve got to let me help him, Tim,” she pleaded.

“No,” the young man replied. “Don’t worry about him.” His hand closed around her upper arm and she flinched. “I’ll take care of everything.”

“No, Tim, please—”

The front door suddenly burst open.

“Hold it right there!” It was Colonel O’Neill and Janet almost sagged with the relief that filled her. When Tim swung around in surprise, she was able to wrench her arm free and she dropped down onto the floor next to Daniel.

“Nooo!” the young man cried and swung his arm up, the gun still clutched in his hand.

“He has a gun!” Janet shouted. Her cry coincided with the almost immediate flash of energy from a zat and Tim Merrill gasped in shock, his body crumpling into a heap on the floor next to her.

“Janet? Are you okay?” It was Sam, kneeling beside her.

“Yes, yes, I’m fine,” she answered, her voice quivering slightly while she ran expert hands over Daniel’s body, relieved to feel the ragged fall and rise of his chest. “But Daniel’s been shot.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Daniel could feel himself fading in and out of consciousness, the voices around him waxing and waning with his awareness. He remembered hearing Jack’s voice, along with Sam and Teal’c’s, so he knew he was safe. “Janet?” he asked, hearing the slur in his voice.

“I’m right here, Daniel.”

He forced his eyes open and felt a rush of relief when her face swam into view. “You okay?” he whispered.

“I’m fine,” she said, her voice breaking enough to worry him.

“My side hurts,” he told her.

“I know. You’ve been shot. I’m holding pressure to the wound.”

“Ah,” he murmured, letting his eyes close. That would explain the burning pain.

“Daniel! Stay with me here.” Motivated by the concern and command in her voice, he forced his eyes open again. “That’s better,” she said. Her cool hand resting briefly on his forehead before smoothing back through his hair and even through the pain, he felt a warm rush of love.

“I love you so much,” he whispered.

“Oh, Daniel.” Her voice was more of a sob than anything and he desperately wanted to reassure her, but her loving face was starting to waver before his eyes again. It was becoming harder for him to concentrate, there seemed to be so much activity around them all of a sudden, people talking and shouting, sirens wailing.

“Doc? The ambulance is here.”

That was Jack’s voice. Janet’s hand left his forehead and he closed his eyes, dimly aware of that all of the activity seemed to center around him now; Janet’s commanding voice fading in and out as she gave orders. Someone pulled his sleeve up and he felt the sharp stab of a needle and then the sensation of fluid running into his vein quickly followed by the familiar feeling of morphine, his pain fading away into blissful nothing—along with his consciousness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You should have told us what you were planning.” Haynes’ voice was annoyed, but Jack ignored the reprimand. He stood with the detective on the front porch; the small clearing in front of Merrill’s cabin over-run with police and sheriff’s deputies.

“It was just a guess,” was all Jack said.

Haynes snorted. “A damn good one, I’d say.”

Jack shrugged and then both men stepped back when the front door opened and two deputies escorted a pale Tim Merrill to a waiting vehicle. Since regaining consciousness the young man had seemed to retreat into his own world, he hadn’t spoken or given any indication he was aware of his surroundings. Jack didn’t know if it was a reaction to the zat blast or to the fact that his plans for the doc had been thwarted, and he really didn’t give a damn. He’d leave that determination to the shrinks.

“What’ll happen to him now?” Jack asked, watching as the pale man was helped into the backseat of one of the squad cars.

It was Haynes’ turn to shrug. “That’s up to your people. Your General Hammond must have some connections, I’ve never seen anything hushed up so fast.” Jack didn’t say anything and Haynes must’ve figured he wasn’t going to get anymore information, because he continued. “But yeah, a psych eval. Kid’s obviously gone off the deep end. And since he didn’t actually kill anyone….”

The detective’s voice trailed off and Jack knew what the man wasn’t saying. Merrill would never see a trial—at least a public one. The Air Force would see to it that he got the appropriate treatment and Jack figured—with any luck—it would be years before the kid was released from the psych ward. Jack saw Carter and Teal’c walking through the assorted vehicles in front of the cabin towards them and he turned to Haynes. “Been nice working with you, Haynes.”

“I wish I could say the same thing, Colonel.” Jack extended his hand and he almost smiled at Haynes reluctance when he shook it.

With a final nod at the detective, Jack descended the porch steps and met up with Carter and Teal’c. “How’s Daniel?” he asked almost immediately, even though it had been less than hour since Fraiser and Daniel had been ferried out by ambulance to a waiting helicopter.

“Don’t know yet,” Carter answered. “He was hit in the abdomen but Janet seemed to think it was a through and through. She said he might need surgery but since his vitals were stable, she’s having him taken back to the SGC.”

“Thank god for that,” Jack muttered. When he’d heard that first gun shot…well, he was thankful the whole damn thing had turned out as well as it had, even with Daniel taking a bullet. Jack headed back down the muddy road to his truck, Teal’c and Sam falling into step with him. Jack tugged up the collar of his jacket a little higher; the rain had started up again, it was getting dark and they had a long drive ahead of them, but he didn’t care. His people were safe and they were on their way home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Can I see your scar?”

From his semi-sitting position in one of the infirmary beds, Daniel huffed quietly at Jack’s irreverent question while out of the corner of his eye he saw Sam try not to laugh. “Ah…no?”

O’Neill didn’t look offended. “Just thought I’d ask.”

“How are you feeling, Daniel Jackson?”

Daniel shifted, sitting up a bit higher, his movements somewhat slow as his incision reminded him that he’d had major abdominal surgery less than twenty-four hours earlier. Sam quickly stepped in to help him, adjusting the pillows at his back. “Thanks, Sam,” he murmured, wincing slightly when he finally got settled back against them. “Better, Teal’c,” he finally answered. “Janet says I should be able to go home soon.”

“Ah yes,” O’Neill drawled, not looking convinced. “That’s what she always says….”

“What who says?” Janet Fraiser asked, pulling back the curtain separating him from the rest of the infirmary and joining the group surrounding Daniel’s bed.

Sam snickered, quickly stifling it, Daniel noted, when the Jack glared at her. “No one you need to worry about, doc,” O’Neill quickly obfuscated. “So,” he asked brightly, “how’s our boy?”

Daniel rolled his eyes and sighed again. Some things—and people—never changed. But he guessed he wouldn’t have it any other way. As for Janet, she merely shook her head. “All things considered, doing remarkably well.” Her eyes softened when she looked at him and he felt the warmth in her gaze all the way to his toes. “How the bullet managed to not hit any of your vital organs, I’ll never know, but I won’t question it. You were very, very lucky.”

“Indeed, you were both very fortunate,” Teal’c added.

“If you can call being kidnapped and shot by a psycho fortunate,” O’Neill commented dryly.

“Considering that it’s usually aliens…” Daniel said slowly. “But, all’s well that ends well,” he finished brightly.

“Ah yes, well…” O’Neill added almost solemnly, “As they also say, you can’t make a silk purse out of pig’s ear.”

Four sets of eyes focused on O’Neill and Daniel frowned. “It’s a sow’s ear, Jack,” Daniel replied and instantly regretted it. He wasn’t sure if his head was fuzzy from the pain or the drugs, but he realized he really didn’t want to get into a cliché-slinging match with Jack.

Thankfully, Janet intervened. “Okay,” she said briskly, smoothly herding the visitors from around his bed. “I think that’s enough company for now.”

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away?” was the last thing Daniel heard O’Neill call over his shoulder before his three team-mates disappeared from view and Janet walked back to his bed.

Her hand was cool and soft when she felt his forehead, her fingers trailing lightly down his cheek in a touch that was distinctly not professional and totally personal. He quickly reached for her hand, smiling when she didn’t protest, instead sitting down in the chair next to his bed. “How do you feel?” she asked, her voice gentle while her thumb moved slowly back and forth across the back of his hand.

“Just a little tender,” he answered honestly. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“I don’t think I was ever in as much danger as you were,” she said, her smile fading.

Daniel wasn’t so sure about that, the thought of what Tim Merrill might have done to her enough to give him permanent nightmares, but right now, when she was safe with him, he decided it really matter any more. “What’s going to happen to him?”

She sighed, looking down at their clasped hands for a moment, before meeting his eyes again. “He’s in a catatonic state right now.” She shook her head, her dark eyes filled with sadness. “He may never recover.”

Daniel wasn’t totally heartless; rationally he knew Merrill was deeply disturbed, but he had trouble working up much sympathy for the young man who had tried to kill him—and kidnapped the woman the loved. “As long as you’re safe.”

Her lips curved in a tender smile and she scooted closer, leaning over him and pressing a kiss to his cheek before she whispered, “I think that works both ways, Doctor Jackson.”

THE END


End file.
